School Project
by whenindoubtwarbleitout
Summary: Rachel Berry never saw the appeal of school, Blaine Anderson never saw the appeal of girls. Turns out, they were both wrong.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hi everyone! This is my first fanfic so please be kind. I'm following a tumblr prompt centered around the idea of a high school project, and I literally ship Blainchel so hard and wish Ryan Murphy would make it canon. It's not really AU, but I guess it doesn't really fit in anywhere on the Glee timeline, so just go with it and see what happens. Please enjoy and review!

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my thoughts.

Part One

It wasn't that Rachel detested school, in fact she thrived under the pressure of academic testing. It was just simply that she didn't feel the need to attend. She was less than stellar in the friends department, and she could't think of anything worse than sitting in a classroom full of ignorant lunatics and listen to a teacher constantly patronize her. It wasn't like she went to school to learn, there was literally no academic benefit from attending McKinley. After all, she spent her entire summer break rote learning the year's syllabus. But her dads insisted, they said that she needed some sort of structure in her life. A place where she could interact with kids her own age and find somewhere to fit in. Frankly, in her opinion, that was bullshit.

Today was no different, as she reluctantly entered the buzzing halls of McKinley High. First up was English, one of her only classes with a seating plan. Rachel didn't mind in the slightest, because being assigned someone to sit next to is always easier than picking from the small pool of leftovers, especially when she was alphabetically sat beside Blaine Anderson. If she was being honest with herself, Rachel had been fantasizing about the ex warbler for months now. He was just so damn charming, and the fact that he was devilishly handsome didn't hurt either. Of course, she couldn't ever act on this little crush she'd developed, given his relationship with Kurt, one of her only friends, and the small matter of his sexual orientation.

"Hey Rach".

Even the sound of his voice made her melt as she took the spot beside him. She really needed to maintain her composure she decided, turning her attention to the teacher positioned at the front of the class.

"Good morning guys" Mrs Jenkins bellowed cheerily, however few had the energy to respond with such vigor. This didn't seem to faze her, as she continued on with the lesson unperturbed.

"Today, you are being given a project which you will have the next few weeks to complete in partners. You will be required to analyse the novel 'Catcher in the Rye' and submit your findings to the class in the form of a formal presentation."

"Are we allowed to choose our partners?" asked Santana Lopez from her position in the fourth row.

"Look beside you. That's who you'll be working with."

Rachel didn't know how to feel about this. On the one hand, she was thrilled to be given a legitimate excuse to spend more time with Blaine, however at the same time, she didn't want to set herself up for ultimate heartbreak.

"I'm assuming you've read this." he stated cheekily, breaking Rachel from her reverie.

"I might have flicked through it once or twice when I found out it was on our summer reading list."

"Isn't it great? Holden is just so damn relatable, and the writing itself? Genius."

"You read?" Rachel asked, curiosity getting the better of her.

"All the time. There's nothing better than getting lost in a good book."

"Finding this out didn't exactly lessen Rachel's growing infatuation. She made a mental note to add both intelligent and well-read onto her list of desirable qualities in a man.

"That's certainly a rarity around here." she added.

"Tell me about it. I've been trying to introduce Kurt to the wonders of literature for months now, but he doesn't seem to be easily persuaded."

At the mention of Kurt's name, Rachel went rigid. She knew she needed to keep her distance from him, because investing in Blaine would only lead to eventual heartache for all parties involved. She couldn't hurt Kurt, he'd been so loyal to her. He was her only friend, and she wasn't going to jeopardize that for an illusory relationship.

"So how are going to do this?" she asked, effectively setting their conversation on a path of professionalism.

"You can come over to my house after school on one of the days our respective clubs aren't meeting."

"That sounds lovely, does Thursday work?"

"Sounds like a date Miss Berry."/span/p

A/N: That's the end of my pretty short chapter, sorry about that. If I get enough reviews, the next chapter will be up in no time. I urge you to review! I love to hear your feedback and constructive criticism! Thanks for reading.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I know, I know, I'm a horrible person. I'm really sorry for the delay (which has almost been a year!). Does it help that I've been really busy? Probably not. I'm also just really lazy. So sorry about that. Here's a new chapter to hopefully rectify it! Please review and tell me what you think!

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my thoughts.

Blaine didn't get nervous very often. Perhaps it was his experience as a performer, or the Anderson charm he'd inherited from his father. Whatever the reason, he hardly seemed to crack under pressure. Today, however, was different. Blaine had spent the entire morning re-organising his desk, tidying his wardrobe, and ensuring that his book collection was in impeccable alphabetical order. He couldn't quite put his finger on why he felt the need to make sure that everything was perfect prior to the arrival of a certain petite brunette. And at that, _female_ petite brunette.

He and Rachel hadn't got the opportunity to talk much throughout their years together at McKinley - their interactions mainly consisting of polite social pleasantries - but she was certainly on his radar. The name Rachel Berry was infamous in Lima, and everyone was made blatantly aware of the songstress' presence - to most people's chagrin. He'd always been slightly in awe of her. Her talent proceeded her, and her reputation as one of McKinley's deadliest show choir competitors made her notorious in the hallowed halls of Dalton Academy. Once he left the warblers to be with Kurt, he got to see a lot more of her. The enigma of Rachel Berry was no more, although his fascination with her had in no way decreased. There was just something about her that kept him guessing.

The doorbell rang, jolting Blaine from his thoughts. He straightened his bow tie once more before dashing down the stairs and unlocking the door.

"Hi Blaine. I apologise for being two minutes early. I'm a stickler for punctuality." she greeted cheerily.

He had to admit he wasn't really a morning person, but the sight of a beaming Rachel did wonders to convince him otherwise.

"No worries, I made sure everything was ready bright and early. I had a feeling you wouldn't be fond of tardiness. I assume you have a copy of the book?" he responded, smiling down at her.

"I actually have two. One for highlighting and taking notes in, and the other for personal use. I like to be prepared."

"Of course you do." he replied, smiling knowingly.

"So, shall we begin Mr Anderson?"

"Of course, right on schedule. Would you be more comfortable working on it in my room?"

Rachel couldn't help it as a small blush began to spread across her cheeks at the mention of Blaine's bedroom, a fact which he was fast to pick up on.

"Sure." she said, being uncharacteristically demure as she looked away in embarrassment.

"Follow me." he replied, the beginnings of a cheeky smile etched across his features.

The two then made their way up the staircase as Blaine directed Rachel to his room. Upon arriving, he flopped onto his bed and patted the space beside him as an invitation for her to make herself more comfortable. Rachel took him up on it as she hesitantly sat down next to Blaine, straightening out her skirt as she did so.

"Relax, I don't bite. Hard." he said cheekily.

At this, Rachel could feel another blush flush her cheeks, and became embarrassed at her inability to control her body's natural reactions - something a born control-freak like her found particularly frustrating. In an attempt to regain control of the situation, Rachel decided to change the subject.

"I really like your room. Your use of bold primary colors really makes a statement."

"Thank you." he replied amusedly. "I've never had someone compliment my choice of bold primary colors before".

"I can't say that's surprising. The uncultured masses populating the halls of McKinley High tend not to appreciate the hard work that goes into choosing the color palette for a space that's so personal. I doubt they've thought much about it. Or anything for that matter. You, Kurt and I seem to be the only people capable of putting thought into anything."

"Funnily enough, Kurt's not really a fan of my room."

"That's strange, why?"

"He says that my furniture choices are too loud."

"Coming from the boy who owns four tartan suits. Besides, I'm loud, and I like it."

"From Rachel Berry, that is the highest of praise."

"And you must know, I don't give compliments away easily."

"I don't doubt that for a second." he replied, moving closer to her. Their interactions had been almost flirtatious, and it was at this point the two had come to realise this. Suddenly becoming aware of the lack of space between them, Rachel rose from the bed and began searching through her bag, ensuring that she did not allow her slight infatuation with Blaine to get the better of her, mind over matter becoming her new mantra.

As she was standing at his desk , rifling through her bag, Blaine took the time to appreciate Rachel's feminine physique. He was gay. He knew that. He'd told Kurt that he was 100% sure of it. But there was no harm in looking, right?

He'd never really noticed how attractive Rachel had been before. I mean, he always knew she was pretty, but he never knew she was this _attractive_. Her slim waist had a perfect curve to it, and her short, light pink, plaid skirt left little to the imagination, showing off her toned, supple thighs. Her tanned skin looked delectable, and when she leaned over far enough, he could just start to see the outline of her-

Shit. Holy shit. No no no. This could not be happening. He was gay, dammit! And in the presence of a girl! He had to get out of there. Quickly.

Blaine got up from the bed and dashed into the bathroom in one swift movement.

"Blaine, are you okay?" Rachel called out, concerned.

"Um, I'm fine."

Shit. What was he going to do? He couldn't exactly go out there in his..._condition_.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, it's just, uh, my dad called, and he's coming home from work early. He said that he's bringing home some work colleagues. So, uh, that means dinner's on me. And I'll have to run to the store now to grab a few things if I want to get everything ready in time."

"Oh, okay then. Do you need a lift or anything?"

"I'm fine, I've got it. How about you just head home now? Can we reschedule?"

"Are you free tomorrow afternoon? It's Friday so my dads are making casserole. You'll be welcome to stay for dinner."

"Sounds great! See you then, bye!"

"Oh, uh, bye Blaine! Good luck!" she said confusedly as she made her way downstairs and started walking home.

There was no doubt in Blaine's mind that she was confused - hell, he was confused! Wasn't he supposed to be gay? And in a relationship? With Rachel's best friend? He honestly didn't know what to do.

Blaine takes pride in a person's right to free choice, and believes that labeling is wrong, although even he can admit that a man who identifies as a homosexual should probably not be reacting to a girl - a very feminine girl - the way he just did. He was conflicted, and confused, but right now, above all else, he was hard. Blaine could worry about everything else tomorrow, but right now, he had to focus on the task at hand.

A/N: So that's the end of my next installment! I promise I'll try and update way more regularly. Reviews will definitely motivate me to do this! Please review and tell me what you thought! All feedback is useful feedback! Thanks for reading.


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